The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-03-27
SCENERY ALONG THE OHIO.
More About the Strange Things That
May Be Seen on Indiana's Border.
Subterranean Streams, Odd and Fantastic
Formations Of the Earth and Various Won
ders Pointed Out by Professor COllett.

said Prof Collett to Journal reporter, "of Har |
rison county cement AT Rock Haven, on the |
Kentucky side of the river, this cement rock,
which is abundant on the Indiana SIDE, is util
ICED, while on this shore it is undeveloped. Inc
cement material is from thirty to sixty feet
thick, and easily accessible. quarter Of mile
below the landing on the Kentucky side is per- |
pendcular cliff, ribbed with limestone, more
than three hundred feet high. Two hundred feet
above low water in the cliff an orfce or door
way ten feet high and four feet wide, opens into
a cave. described by Major Wright more than
mile in length, containing a lake three hun
dred feet long and thirty feet wide; also. river
which is fall fourteen feet high. natural
bridge and rooms ten, twenty and thirty feet
high. tbs inhabited by eyeless fishes and craw-
fishes, also by bats, rats, and striped SOUR
rels. Buzzards shelter and nest in the first
room, which is difficult Of access. In summer
small stream of water triekes from the doorway.
After heavy rain torrent of water four feet
in diameter is hurled in sin gle sweep sixty feet
to the rocks below, landing in sheet of foam.
In winter the cliff is sometimes cased in a beau
tiful arnor Of ice.
The next landing is Mauckport. in Harrison
county. Here occur typical quarries OF oolitlc
limestone, which have given character to all the
quarries Of this stone in Indiana. 1t is named
oolitic because made Of small round globules OF
lime about the size of small radish seed, and
resembling the eggs Of fish. The stone in the
State-house is political, but does not represent
the fishegg appearance like the fine Harrison
Buck creek, and all the hllsides for several miles
nd arnd vyith halls
from two to eighteen inches in diameter. Many
broken and partially worked specimens show
the Indian and prehistoric quarryman have been
there. The ancient pre-gacial river, which
passed through the center of Harrison county in
a valley from fifteen to seventeen miles wide,
and from 25o to 300 feet deep. approaches the
Ohio at this point It was natural to suppose
that it had discharge by present valley of the
Ohio. careful examination by barometer
showed outlet to the west south vest
careful research found that at the level of the
present Ohio, or above it, the river had passed,
overlooking sonth by Elizabethtown, KY, up
the valley of tier creek. Kentucky. and thence
to the broad aiiuvial plain, south and southwest
OF EliZabethtown, to the broad valley of No!in
creek. At the head of this valley a fall, exceed
ing that of Niagara. or 250 feet high gave variety
to this mighty prehistoric flood. Thence it had
it's discharge through Nolin valley and Green
river to the lower Ohio. Below this point the
Ohio shows. by its narrow valley. its PERCEPTIONS
sides and its hayward course that it is new
river, new in geologic time which counts ages
and cycles of ages, while the old river by its
rounded hills and covered rocks, show age. for
nature abhors bare rock as scar or wound, and
seeks by decay, to cover it with soil.
New Amsterdam, the next landing the
Indiana side, Is at the discharge of the under
ground Riperden and Grassy valleys. These
sunken lands have no surface outflow of water,
and the underground drainage is by the Blue
spring. whore the creek boils up in sufficient vol
ume to run mill. Near Kendals Landing
art of trad
Keel was worked about the year 1888. 1t was
| sawed into pencils and supplied to the limited
Western trade, but the pocket
hausted.
"On a terrace bluff Immediately above the
landing in Keudali's orchard are famous small
| piles Of stones, known as stone graves Disk
| shaped fints three to five inches in diameter,
heavily thlckened on one SIDE and found scat
| tered over this garden area, indicate the agri-
| cultural implements or hoes of the Indians.
| 'Leayenworth, the countyseat of Crawford
county, Indiana, is a landing point for mail
and packet steamboats,. Here. also, is the
| underground drainage characteristic of this re-
| gion. Springs of great size to be seen at
| many points. The adjoining alluval lands west
of town are shaded with black walnut and honey
| locusts, which are covered with parasitic mis-
| tletoe. great many persons do not know
there is mistletoe in Indiana at all or that mis-
tletoe grows these kinds Of trees.
During the oil excitement of 1864 we'll was
| bored here giving nothing more valuable than
| white sulphur water Wells were also bored in
| other parts of this county near the center, and
| in Little Blue river, some of which gave small
quantities of oil, others only white sulpher wa
| ter. One of these, Otis we'll at Mff1in, was
| bored to a depth of 1.180 feet, passing through
the strata OF the sub-carbonferous groups as also
| the black Genesee slate of the Devonian age In
which small amount of gas and petroleum
| were found. Equipped for q severe walk you
proceed from Leavenworth northeast to Wyan-
dotte Cave The cliffs are 300 or 400 feet high
are at the base of St. Louis limestone; near the
| top the Chester group is we'll displayed capped
| by conglomerate sandstone at the base of the
| coal measures.
"Near the southwest end of Coles bridge over
Blue river, on level bench, twenty five i'm
pressions were observed in the solid rock. made
| when in plastic condition, apparently of the
| feet of horses, mules, colts. deer and sheep
| The resemblance is very perfect, and calculated
to excite wonder, There are the remains of a
peculiar seaweed in the Chester and St
Louis rocks of Indiana, Kentucky and Arkan-
sas. Three and half miles from Leavenworth
the road passes along the base of the lower
massive sandrock of the Chester beds. On the
west side of the road is of the attractions of
tho vicinity, known as the Ruins of the Giants
Castle" A depression, such as might
be proper for the basement or cellar
| of an extensive edifce, is filled with
a confused mass of clean-cut cubes and rhombs
| of hard ferruginous sandstone, Of giant size.
| Square and columnar masses lie scattered about
the rim of the depression, or stand upright as
monolithic sentnels. Many curious spectator
mas wondered at tnlS phenomenon ana speculat
1 ed as to the agency, whether human, volcanic or
otherwise. 1t is simply funnel sink beginning
at the level of the Chester sandstone which, from
the sand-iron (silicoferrugnous) nature Of its
material. adopts, under earthquake motion,
such rhombic cubes as lines of cleavage. These,
| undermined by a cavernous sink which wash
away the underlying clay, left the rock clean
cut and bare, as if done by the hand of man.
Similar masses of rocks from one to fifty feet
square are seen perched along the steep bluff of
Oil creek, Pennsylvania, especially near Petro
leum Center A short distance will bring US to
the entrance to Wyandotte cave"
Double Who Undid Him.